Course Description

Module Coverage

1. Overview of Financial Governance for Non-Profit Organisations 

i. Definition and significance of financial governance with respect to charities and institutions of a public character (IPC).

ii. Key principles from the Code of Governance for Charities and IPCs:

• Accountability
• Transparency
• Stewardship

iii. Overview of the Charities Portal as a resource for best practices and compliance.

iv. Example of a charity demonstrating strong financial governance, emphasising practical benefits like donor trust and regulatory compliance.

2. Roles and Responsibilities of the Board, Finance Committee, Donors, Community and Government  

i. Fiduciary duties of the board:

• Oversight of financial resources.
• Strategic financial decision-making.

ii. Responsibilities of the finance committee:

• Budget review.
• Monitoring financial performance.

iii. Role of Donors, Community and Government 

iv. Avoiding conflicts of interest: Guidelines from the Charities Portal.

3. Financial Policy Development and Implementation

i. Importance of financial policies in ensuring governance:

• Budgeting policy.
• Reserves policy.
• Procurement policy.
• Conflict-of-interest policy.

ii. Practical steps for policy development:

• Consultation with stakeholders.
• Alignment with regulatory requirements.
• Periodic review and updates.

iii. Examples:

• An effective reserves policy aligned with the Code of Governance for Charities.
• Case study: National Kidney Foundation (NKF) scandal and lessons learned.

4. Financial Governance vs. Performance 

i. Governance as a foundation for financial sustainability:

• Ensuring resource allocation aligns with the organisation’s mission.
• Measuring governance through metrics like financial ratios and KPIs.

ii. Financial performance: A result of effective governance practices.

iii. Tools for governance tracking:

• Financial dashboards.
• Charity Transparency Framework.

iv. Case Study:

• Governance vs. performance: Analysing a charity that focused on financial performance but neglected governance, resulting in reputational damage.